Both Bruins advance with 11-AAA tournament wins over Summit, Indy

By Chris Yow

BRENTWOOD — With Summit coach Jim Fey sidelined with a positive test for COVID-19, assistant Ben Parker took over the head coaching duties for the Spartans. His debut did not end as well as he would have hoped, however, as Brentwood defeated Summit 39-32 in the District 11-AAA quarterfinals.

The loss ends Summit’s season without a return trip to the regional tournament, following a sectional berth last season.

“Not a whole lot changed. We had a game plan, and we’d been in communication with (Coach Fey),” Parker said. “We fully expected to come in here and win the game. We had a good chance the last time out against these guys.

“Our guys tried to execute that game plan; we just couldn’t get the ball to go in the basket. “

In a brief flash of things to come in the first quarter, Summit won the tip and Tre Hunter darted down the left side of the lane, but missed the layup. Summit struggled for the rest of the game to finish at the rim.

“Early on we dug ourselves into a hole, and against a team like Brentwood — especially on the road — it’s hard to fight back against that,” Parker said. “I’m proud of our team; they battled a lot of adversity this year and they played hard. Just couldn’t get the big shots to go in tonight.”

Much of Brentwood’s success in the first half came from second-chance points, as the Bruins dominated the glass on both ends of the floor. Brentwood coach Greg Shirley was grateful for those points, though it isn’t the method he prefers.

“I kind of like it when we make shots the first time, so I’d rather not have any offensive rebounds. But I was really proud of the way we started the game tonight,” he said. “The second shots early definitely helped that.”

Brentwood held a 17-5 lead after the first quarter, and did not outscore the Spartans in any other period in the game. The offense played well enough to maintain the lead, but it was the defense Shirley was most proud of in the win.

“Being able to hold a potent and talented offense to 32 points says a lot about us. We talk about defense sometimes having to pull you through, and that’s what happened tonight,” he said.

Brentwood shot the ball well in the first quarter against the Spartans’ zone pressure, and following a timeout after a pair of Bruins 3-pointers, the Spartans matched up man-to-man. Brentwood made quick work of that as well, continuing their offensive outburst with seven more points before Hunter got a bucket and a foul to stop the bleeding.

In the second quarter, Summit returned to their zone defense, and was able to force Brentwood into more difficult shots from the perimeter. Destin Wade then opened the quarter with a long ball, and Hunter converted another three-point play to cut the lead to 19-11.

John Windley and Davis White extended the lead with six straight points, but Summit battled to make it 27-16 at the break.

“Early in the game, it was just the effort to get on the offensive glass. We talked about it at halftime, and made some adjustments,” Parker said.

Coming out of the locker rooms, Summit was determined to force the Bruins into tougher shots and the Spartans increased their effort on the defensive glass.

Summit was on a 9-0 run before Brentwood finally got a bucket with a little more than half the quarter gone. The Bruins scored just four points in the third period, but held Summit at bay.

The offensive output from Summit wasn’t enough to overcome the early deficit, but the Spartans certainly gave it all they had to give themselves an opportunity late.

“Give Summit credit, they played hard and they made plays when we didn’t,” Shirley said. “I’m proud of this team for moving on and qualifying for regionals. You had two teams out there tonight who really wanted it.”

Brentwood boys 39, Summit 32

S 5 11 7 9 — 32
B 17 10 4 8 — 39

Summit (32) — Destin Wade 10, Bradley Stewart 3, Tre Hunter 6, Konata Werts 11, CJ Jones 2
Brentwood (39) —John Windley 19, Griffin Burke 2, Jake Brock 3, Davis White 6, Macen Redner 5, Daniel Cochran 2, Dustin Bluhme 2
3-pointers — Summit 3 (Wade 2, Werts), Brentwood 6 (Windley 3, Brock, White, Wedner)

Top seed Lady Bruins take care of business

A week-long layoff was no issue for fifth-ranked Brentwood in the District 11-AAA quarterfinals on Monday night, as they cruised to a 76-21 win over Independence at home.

The Bruins used a high-pressure defense and made the most of transition opportunities in the win. Junior Sydney Ryan led all scorers with 26 points, while Princeton signee Amelia Osgood hit four 3-pointers en route to a 24-point performance for the Lady Bruins.

Independence’s young group had no answer for the Brentwood defense in the first half, as they were held scoreless in the second quarter and trailed 46-6 at the half. 

Brentwood girls 76, Independence 21

I 6 0 13 2 — 21
B 24 22 16 14 — 76

Independence (21) — Leah Oubre 5, Evy Nichols 9, Ryan Brown 3, Cristy Martinez 4
Brentwood (76) — Eden Oates 6, Kate Workman 9, Kaitlyn Lorenzi 2, Sydney Ryan 26, Chloe Wampler 3, Sophis Rosten 4, Amelia Osgood 24, Ellie Meadows 2
3-pointers — Independence 2 (Oubre, Nichols), Brentwood 9 (Osgood 4, Ryan 3, Oates, Wampler)

All Photos by Chris Yow / SM-Tn Sports

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